Nerdbloke

I have been thinking of ways to build a very compact MAME arcade machine. Something that is only marginally wider than a large LCD computer monitor, perhaps 15 cm deep and maybe only 50cm high. Not to heavy, so it can be mounted on a wall, something like a dart board.

I don’t want to cramp the players by having a really tiny control panel, so the machine would need a mechanism to allow the control panel itself to unfold so that it can neatly (and easily) assemble into a larger control panel. I want the control panel to host at least two players with each player having access to one joystick and six buttons. More buttons would be required for coins and player start. The control panel will also need to contain a trackball.

Not being mechanically inclined, I could not envisage how how this could happen. I had a vague memory of coming across a book that outlined all the advances and knowledge in mechanical devices. My googling skills led me to this wonderful book:  Mechanisms and Mechanical Devices Source (Edition 4).

It is chock full of mechanical nerd goodness. More linkages, levers, pulleys and cams than you could poke a lever at. Here is a sample I snagged from page 93:

There are another 551 pages just like this, but different! Fantastic.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 18th, 2012 at 5:43 pm and is filed under Arcade, Internet, Man cave. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.